Pizza: The Healthier Take-Out Food

Reader's Digest EditorsJul 12

Americans order 3 billion pizzas a year, mainly from the more than 60,000 pizza restaurants found in every burg with a ZIP code.

There’s no reason to cut pizza out of your life — it offers a quick, easy, tasty way to get loads of vegetables, fruit, fiber, and even fish without much artery-clogging saturated fat. But pizza, like any other take-out/order-in food, has its own pitfalls.

When the Center for Science in the Public Interest evaluated pizza slices from the top chains, it discovered fat levels approaching — and sometimes surpassing — a fast-food cheeseburger. The main culprit: way too much cheese. Add to that fatty meat like sausage and pepperoni, and you are in the unhealthiest reaches of the food world. Here’s how to make pizza a healthy delight: